Resolution on Partnering with Canada to Create Job Opportunities for Returning US Veterans

Summary

Current unemployment rates among US veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq remain stubbornly high, while the unemployment rate in Alberta, Canada is just 4.4 percent. Finding skilled workers to fill positions with starting salaries of over $100,000 a year for oil sands development projects is particularly challenging for companies in Alberta, and our returning veterans often have the skills needed by these companies. To remedy both problems, government officials from both the United States and the province of Alberta are discussing the possibility of establishing a “helmets to hardhats” initiative that would match US veterans with jobs in Canada’s oil sands (northern Alberta). This resolution would support this initiative.

Model Resolution

Whereas, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, current unemployment rates among US veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq hover stubbornly at just under 10 percent; and

Whereas, the Bureau of Labor Statistics figure does not even contemplate those returning veterans who are underemployed or have given up looking for work; and

Whereas, the unemployment rate in Alberta, Canada is just 4.4 percent; and

Whereas, companies in Alberta have difficulty finding skilled workers to fill a projected 170,000 additional positions for oil sands development projects; and

Whereas, our returning veterans often have the skills needed by these companies; and

Whereas, the salaries for positions with companies developing Alberta’s oil sands typically begin at $100,000 a year; and

Whereas, government officials from both the United States and Alberta have informally discussed the possibility of establishing a “helmets to hardhats” initiative that would match US veterans with jobs in Canada’s oil sands (northern Alberta);

Therefore be it resolved that the US and Canadian governments work together to resolve challenges related to Canadian residency and work requirements;

Be it further resolved that the commonwealth/state of [INSERT STATE] supports initiatives that match qualified US veterans with jobs in Canada’s oil sands and encourages the Canadian government through their work permit process to prioritize the hiring of qualified US veterans;

Be it further resolved that this resolution will be forwarded to the appropriate representatives at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC, the US Department of Veterans Affairs and the US Consulate in Calgary, Alberta as well as to the US Secretary of State, the US Secretary of Commerce, the US Secretary of Labor and to the President of the United States.